Effects of MicropolIutants on freshwater zooplankton: a systematic review

Abstract

The continuous and excessive use of micropollutants such as pharmaceuticals, pesticides, microplastics, and heavy metals has generated various impacts on freshwater ecosystems and the organisms that inhabit them, such as zooplankton. These organisms are highly sensitive to environmental changes and play a crucial ecological role, acting as a link between primary producers and higher trophic levels. To understand the effects of micropollutants on zooplankton, we conducted a systematic review and collected information from primary studies on pollutants and functional traits of zooplankton organisms, such as body morphology, physiology, and behavior, which directly influence organism survival. In studies linking functional traits and ecosystem functions, four main ecological functions performed by organisms are considered, categorized as Survival, Reproduction, Feeding, and Growth. The systematic review was conducted using the PRISMA methodology (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses). Studies published up to 2019 were obtained from the work of Josué et al. (2021), and from 2019 to July 2025 we conducted new searches in the Web of Science database using the same search code, covering a total period of 21 years of research. In the search compilation, 1,387 studies published between 2004 and 2025 were identified, of which 113 met the inclusion criteria and were incorporated into the systematic review. The main observed effects of micropollutants on zooplankton were negative, affecting their reproductive capacity, environmental survival, feeding mode, ability to escape predators and swim, body size, among other parameters. Thus, this study highlights the gradual increase in the number of publications on the subject and emphasizes the risks posed by these pollutants to freshwater zooplankton.